Chapter 167: Don’t Be Afraid, Teacher Is Here

The old hen was held in Scarlett’s hand, clucking incessantly but completely powerless to resist.

Andrew, standing nearby, was stunned. He wouldn’t dare grab an old hen like that, as there was a high probability that it would peck his hand.

"Alright, this should do it."

Scarlett turned around and lifted the old hen. It was still flapping its wings and struggling.

No one would have imagined that Scarlett, who usually maintained a cold and taciturn image, could handle an old hen as easily as a girl from the countryside.

"What are you staring at? Get a piece of rope. I’ll tie this hen up, or she’ll run around."

"Oh."

Andrew hurried back into the house, found a plastic rope, and handed it to Scarlett. He then watched as she skillfully tied the hen’s legs together and placed it on the floor inside.

"Teacher, have you killed a chicken before? Why are you so practiced at catching hens?"

"No."

Scarlett shook her head in denial and then said, "I just learned some self-defense techniques that include grappling moves. I used a similar motion to grab the hen’s neck."

"Then why are you so practiced at tying the rope, too?"

Andrew watched Scarlett catch the hen and tie it up in one smooth motion, no less skillfully than an experienced farmer.

"Isn’t this just like tying up test papers or textbooks? It’s not hard."

Scarlett turned to look at Andrew, wondering why he found it so strange.

"I... I see?"

Andrew nodded slowly, but he still had some doubts.

Is that really the reason?

Scarlett seemed to read his expression.

The corners of her mouth curled up slightly. She stared at Andrew and said fiercely, in a threatening tone, "If you’re disobedient and make me angry in the future, I’ll tie you up just like this old hen and throw you straight onto the bed!"

Hearing this, a chill swept through Andrew’s entire body.

For some reason, he felt that Scarlett’s words were definitely not just a threat. She really would tie him up and throw him onto the bed.

The two of them crouched on the first floor of the house, chatting back and forth.

Andrew suddenly asked curiously, "Teacher, why have you been staring at this old hen? Are you hungry?"

Andrew thought Scarlett was hungry again because she usually got hungry easily and was often snacking.

If there were no snacks, she would just bite him.

But this time, Scarlett wasn’t hungry. She shook her head and replied, "I’m not hungry."

"Then why do you keep staring at the old hen?"

Scarlett didn’t answer immediately. Instead, she stood up and took a gleaming kitchen knife out of a nearby cupboard, startling Andrew.

"I want to kill the chicken!"

"!!!"

The old hen: "Cluck! Cluck! Cluck!!!"

Andrew’s heart skipped a beat. His first reaction was that Scarlett was joking.

But looking at her serious expression and the gleaming kitchen knife in her hand, Andrew felt that she was completely serious.

"Te... Teacher, are you serious?" Andrew was so startled that he began to stutter.

"Yes!"

Scarlett nodded firmly. "Anyway, your grandmother and the others are busy. Why don’t the two of us kill this chicken? That way, they’ll only have to cook it!"

Is it really to make things easier for my grandmother and the others? Why do I feel like Teacher just wants to kill a chicken herself?

But as Scarlett became more and more determined, Andrew had no choice but to help.

The two of them searched online for a chicken-slaughtering tutorial and studied it carefully.

Then, they both looked at the shivering old hen with its legs tied and revealed sinister grins.

"It seems we can’t let you live until tonight."

"Cluck! Cluck-cluck!! Cluck-cluck-cluck!!!"

After putting on aprons and getting ready, Scarlett grabbed the old hen by the neck, picked up the kitchen knife, and brought it down in one swift motion.

By the time Andrew returned with the hot water, the old hen’s head had been separated from its body, and it had breathed its last.

Friends who often kill people...

Wait, no!

Friends who often kill chickens know that many people have a strong nauseous reaction the first time they do it.

But Scarlett didn’t feel any discomfort. She even cleaned up the bloodstains outside and began plucking the feathers.

Finally, following the tutorial, she washed the entire hen clean, removed the inedible parts, including the chicken’s rear, and placed it on the stove.

Just then, Andrew’s grandmother returned and was surprised to see the slaughtered and prepared old hen.

After learning that Scarlett had killed it, she even praised her.

Andrew also hadn’t expected that Scarlett, whose cooking skills were so poor, would be so adept at killing a chicken, succeeding on her very first try.

After dinner, the elders gathered downstairs to play cards, while Andrew and Scarlett went back upstairs to their room.

When Andrew finished his shower and opened the bedroom door, he found that the lights were off and instinctively reached out to turn them on.

"Teacher, why didn’t you turn on the light?"

As soon as he turned it on, Scarlett reached out and turned it off again.

"Don’t. I’m going to watch a horror movie."

"What? A horror movie!"

Hearing this, Andrew’s hair stood on end as childhood fears resurfaced.

"Come here quickly. Let’s watch it together."

In the darkness, Scarlett’s face, illuminated by the dim light of the laptop, looked somewhat terrifying.

Andrew walked tremblingly to the bedside, sat down, and asked in a low voice, "Teacher... why did you suddenly want to watch a horror movie?"

"I just felt like watching one. There’s nothing else to do anyway. Hurry up and get under the covers to watch with me."

As she spoke, Scarlett lifted the quilt and let Andrew crawl in.

Scarlett immediately huddled close to Andrew, placed the laptop on the pillow, and the two of them lay together under the covers.

"This is a good way to train your courage. As a boy, being too timid isn’t appropriate."

"Uh... Teacher, is this really not because you didn’t get your fill of killing chickens this afternoon and want to keep going?"

"Of course not. What does this have to do with killing a chicken?"

"..."

Although Scarlett wouldn’t admit it, Andrew felt that his guess was correct.

Does Scarlett really have some kind of strange, perverted fetish? I’m a bit scared.

Andrew thought to himself as Scarlett clicked the play button to start the horror movie.

It was a classic horror slasher movie. The sudden screams and eerie background music made Andrew shiver and shrink beneath the covers.

Meanwhile, Scarlett watched with great interest, holding Andrew tightly to comfort him while staring intently at the screen.

Suddenly, the scene in the movie shifted. The killer appeared abruptly with a startling cry, and Andrew was so frightened that he dove straight into Scarlett’s arms.

Scarlett was also completely immersed in the movie by now. She held Andrew tightly and comforted him.

"Don’t be afraid, don’t be afraid. Teacher is here."

Scarlett wasn’t afraid at all, but her expression was one of total immersion, as if a killer were hunting them down and she were protecting Andrew.

She was very satisfied with the feeling of Andrew relying on her and her protecting him.

Subconsciously, she felt that if things continued this way, Andrew would always stay by her side.